Refrigeration



Dec. 19, 1939. G, M, BLOM WST ET AL 2,184,112

REFRIGERATION .Filed July 24, 1937 INV OR5 Mai [MM XTTORNEY.

Patented Dec. 19, 1939 L UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE REFRIGERATION N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Application July 24, 1937, Serial No.155,374 In Germany August 14, 1936 8 Claims.

This invention relates to refrigeration, and more particularly to icetrays and grids for use in production of ice cubes in refrigerators.

It is an object of this invention to provide an 5 improved flexible gridwhich is of simple construction and from which ice cubes can easily beremoved by twisting or bending the grid.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improvement formechanically ejecting a grid 10. from a tray whereby the ice bond isreadily broken between the tray and ice cubes frozen therein.

The above and other objects and advantages of this invention will bebetter understood from 15 the following description taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, andof which Fig. 1 is a plan view of an ice tray and grid embodying theinvention; Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken 20 on line 2-2 ofFig. 1; Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4is a vertical sectional view, taken at line 4II of Fig. 5, of anintermediate U-shaped member of the grid; Fig.

5 is a sectional view taken on line 5--5 of Fig. 4

25 and Fig. 6 is a fragmentary plan view of the grid to illustrate theshape that it assumes when it is bent.

In Fig. 1 a grid I is shown positioned in an ice tray iI havingresilient bottom and side walls.

30 The tray is preferably made of suitable metal, such as aluminum orstainless steel, for example, and about the upper edges of the sidewalls is provided an outward extending flange l2. A U- shaped handle I4,having projections I adapted 35 to bear against-the underside of flangeI2, is pivotally connected to an end of the tray to facilitate theremoval thereof from a cooling element of a refrigerator.

The grid Ill consists of a plurality of L-shaped 40 end members I 6 andintermediate U-shaped members I'I arranged to form a longitudinalpartition and a plurality of spaced transverse partitions or dividingmembers. The closed ends I8 of the U-shaped members II and one side I9.45 of the L-shaped end members It are substantially in alignment toprovide the longitudinal partition. The other side 20 of the end membersiii and the open sides ZI of the intermediate members I'I extend fromthe longitudinal parti- 50 tion to the longitudinal side walls of thetray, the sides 20 and H of adjacent members IE and Ill extending inopposite directions to provide the transverse partitions or dividingmembers.

In the sides 20 and N of the members I6 and 5% Ill, and closely adjacentto the portions thereof forming the longitudinal partition, are providedvertical slots 22, as shown most clearly in Figs.

4 and 5, which are about one-third the height of the members. Themembers I6 and I! are held together by a strip 23 which extends through5 the slots 22 and is secured at its ends at 24, as by welding, forexample, to the sides I9 of the L- shaped members I6. 2

The members I6 and I I forming the vertical partitions of the grid maybe stamped from thin sheet metal, such as stainless steel or aluminum.The resilient strip 23 interlocks the members I6 and I1 and preferablyis made of a metal, such as stainless steel, so that it will bemechanically durable and will effectively transmit the bending andtorsional forces imparted thereto when the grid is twisted and bent.

At one end of the grid is provided a lever 25 for mechanically removingthe grid from the tray. The lever 25 is provided with a handle portion26 and is pivotally connected at 21 to a raised part of a transversepartition formed by an end U-shaped member 11. The leverextends beyondthe pivotal connection 21 toward the longitudinal side wall of the trayand is adapted to 25 bear against the flange I2 when it is in itshoriozntal position, as shown in Fig. 3.

In using the grid just described, the grid is positioned in a tray andthe latter is filled with water. After the water has been frozen and ice30 cubes have been produced by placing the tray in a cooling element ofa refrigerator, the tray is removed from the cooling element with theaid of handle I4. The grid I0 is removed from tray l I by raising lever25, and with such lifting move-- 5 ment a separating force is exertedbetween the grid and the tray.

By applying the separating force at a corner of the tray at which regionthe elasticity of the tray is relatively small, the danger of deforminthe tray is at a minimum even though considerable force is applied to atray side wall to effect separation of the grid and tray. The separatingforce first breaks the ice bond at the corner of the tray. Withcontinued upward movement of lever 25, the breaking away of the icetakes place approximately diagonally of the tray. By first breaking theice bond at one corner of the tray, the tray is loosened from the icewith what may be referred to as a rolling-off action.

The provision of a lever which extends transversely of the tray and actson a longitudinal side wall adjacent the corner of the tray isparticularly suited for a flexible grid of the type described. Theso-called rolling-off action that these conditions, the deformation ofthe longitudinal sidewall usually is sufficient to break the iceibond atthe surface of the ice. After the ice bondis broken at the surface ofthe ice and at the tray side wall, the ice is readily loosened from thetray with continued upward movement of the lever. When it is desired toeffect removal of the grid from the tray in this manner, the portion ofX the lever bearing against the tray may be rounded, as indicated by thedotted line 28 in Fig. 3, to produce a wedging action between the sidewall of-tlie tray and the rounded edge of the lever. With such wedgingaction the tray side wall is forced outward and springs away I from theice adhering thereto.

To remove the ice cubes from the grid ill the latter is bent to distortthe strip 23 and flex the members [6 and I1. When the grid is twistedthe torsional force imparted to the strip 23 causes the latter to assumeapproximately the shape shown in Fig. 6, whereby the ice cubes areeffectively released from the grid. If desired, the flexibility of thegrid may be increased by securing only one end of strip 23 to an endpartition member Hi. This permits longitudinal inovement of the membersl6 and I! along the strip 23 when the grid is bent to facilitate theremoval of the ice cubes from the grid.

Instead of providing'the closed slots 22 in the partition members l6 andI1, slots may be provided which are open at the top or bottom of thepartition members. In such casethe slots may be closed after the striphas been inserted in the slots or a member provided to block anymovement of the strip out of the slots.

In making a grid Hi the members I8 and I1 may be assembled on alongstrip or band of material. After the end members 16 are secured to theband, as by welding, the strip may be cut at the end members I 6.Instead of providing L- shaped end members l8, all of the membersassembled on the stripmay be U-shaped. Certain of the U-shaped membersmay be cut into two parts to provide the end partition members havingonly two sides.

Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown anddescribed, it will be apparent that various modifications and changesmay be made without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention, and that certain features may be employed independently ofothers, as pointed outin the following claims.

What is claimed is: 1. A grid unit for refrigerators including aplurality of U-shaped partitions or wall membfirfi, the closed ends ofsaid members being sub-- together as a unit.

3. In ice freezing apparatus, the combination of a tray body, a gridremovably fitting into said' tray body and including a centrallydisposed longitudinal partition and transverse partitions, and a leverpivoted on one of said transverse partitions at, a region removed fromsaid longitudinal partition and cooperating with only one wall of saidtray near a corner thereof to lift said grid from said tray.

4. A grid unit for refrigerators comprising a plurality of partitionelements each having two or more side walls joined together, openingsarranged one at each juncture of two of said side walls, and a stripextending through the openings to hold said partition elements together,said strip being disposed substantially in the plane of certain of saidside walls.

5. A grid unit for refrigerators comprising a plurality of metallicpartition elements each having a longitudinally extending portion andone or more transversely extending portions joined thereto, a resilientmetallic member extending substantially the length of the grid unit in avertical plane adjacent to said longitudinally extending portions andupon which said partition elements are mounted, and said resilientmetallic memberbeing sufliciently durable mechanically to effectivelytransmit bending and tor-,

sional forces imparted thereto when the grid unit is twisted and bent.

6. In combination with an ice freezing tray having a bottom and sidewalls, a grid including a longitudinal partition' and transversepartitions, and a lever operatively connected to one of said transversepartitions and adapted upon movement thereof to cooperate with a sidewall parallel to the longitudinal partition and at a region offset withrespect to the medial longitudinal and transverse axes of the tray toexert a separating force between the grid and the tray.

'7. A grid member removably fitting into an icetray member havinga'bottom, end walls and longer longitudinal side, walls, and manuallyoperable means attached to said grid member and including a parttransverse to the longitudinal side walls adapted to cooperate with thetray member at a region offset with respect to the medial longitudinaland transverse axes of the tray member to break the ice bond and loosenthe grid member from the tray member.

8. A grid unit for refrigerators comprising a plurality of partitionelements having longitudinally extending portions in alignment and oneor more transversely extending portions connected to each of saidlongitudinally extending portions, said transversely extending portionsof said partition elements each having an opening adjacent each junctureof two of said portions,

and a metallic strip passing through the openings to hold said elementstogether.

GUSTAV MARTEN BLOMQVIST. STURE FOLKE TORSTENSSON.

